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ADVANTAGE ARTEMIS
In what promises to be an engaging duel for the overall 2007 Breitling MedCup title it was Russell Coutts and the crew of Torbjorn Tornqvist's Artemis which seized the upper hand after the first two races of the Hyeres Trophy.

Tied with Vicente Tirado's Caixa Galicia going into this regatta Coutts and his crew eased four points clear thanks to their first and second places from today's two races on the Bay of Hyeres.

A long wait for the breeze to fill in and settle was finally rewarded with 7-10 knots of SE'ly wind which saw the first race start at just after 1600hrs and the second windward-leeward contest at 1735hrs.

"I think both boats (Caixa and Artemis) are really pretty similar in speed. We had two good start and it is then always a little easier to make yourself look quick in these conditions, but really I don't think there is much between the two boats." Artemis' trimmer Ross Halcrow explained.

"We have a few new sails here, working sails and a few special sails for the coastal race, other than that and a good servicing of everything, a good wet sanding of the bottom of the boat and the foils we have not done anything significant since Portimao," confirms Artemis' boat captain Chris Hoskings.

2007 Breitling MedCup.
Regatta 5 of 5, Hyeres Trophy, Hyeres France.

Standings after two races:

1. Artemis (T Tornqvist SWE-Judel Vrolijk 2007) 3pts, (2,1)
2. CxG Corporacion Caixa Galicia (V Tirado-ESP Botin & Carkeek 2007) 7pts, (4,3)
3. Siemens (A Roemmers, ARG-Judel Vrolijk 2007) 10pts, (9,1)
4. Stay Calm (S Robinson, GBR-Judel Vrolijk 2007) 10pts (6,4)
5. Valle Romano Mean Machine (P de Ridder, MON-Judel Vrolijk 2006) 11pts (3,8)
6. Mutua Madrilena (V Vascotto, ESP-Botin & Carkeek 2007) 13pts, (2,11)
7. Patches (E Conneely, IRL- Reichel Pugh 2007) 13pts.

www.medcup.org

TOUR DE BRETAGNE A LA VOILE
They race against sailors such as Bertrand Pace, Bertrand de Broc, Jeremie Beyou, Armel le Cleac'h, Nicolas Troussel. James Bird and Ryan Parkin are very enthusiastic, you can hear it !

"This Round Brittany Race is good" says James Bird, GFI Group skipper. "I realy enjoy it. The legs are short. You start on the morning... you arrive in the afternoon. And it is very close together during the all races. So it is interesting to improve your skills in tactics and strategy."

His co-skipper for the Tour de Bretagne a la Voile is Ryan Parkin, a Kiwi sailor who lives in La Trinite sur Mer in the south of Brittany. Ryan arrived in France from Auckland in 2002. "I worked for Yvan Bourgnon on his trimaran for two years" says James' crew for this race. He entered this race two years ago, sailing with Liz Wardley. This year we are against each other - Liz sails with french Eric Peron.

Ryan is not the only Kiwi in the race as Jason Parkin sails with Irish sailor Paul O'Riain aboard City Jet. Together, the young Brit form Southampton and the New Zealander who lives in La Trinite have finished 11th in the first leg from Saint-Malo to Saint-Quay Portrieux and 25 in the second one from Saint-Quay to Perros-Guirec. Twentieth in the provisional rankings after the first two legs, both men would like to find a budget to enter in the two-handed transatlantic next year.

Both guys arrived from the leg three this morning. With 30 other two-handed crews, they have set sail to round Briittany to join Douarnenez where they will race two inshore regattas on Wednesday, before setting sail again for two off-shore races toward Piriac-sur-mer and Lorient.

Non French sailors in the Tour de Bretagne a la Voile 2007 are Liz Wardley (PNG - Sojasun), Pascal Desmarets and Benoit Kersten (BEL - Tetraktys), Jason and Ryan Parkin (NZL - City Jet and GFI Group), James Bird (GBR - GFI Group) and Paul O'Riain (IRL- City Jet).

Top ten places, third leg:
1. Bostik (Nicolas Lunven, Charles Caudrelier)
2. Financo (Nicolas Troussel, Armel Le Cleac'h)
3. Espoir Credit Agricole (Christopher Pratt, Jeremie Beyou)
4. Defi Mousquetaires (Thomas Rouxel, Erwan Israel)
5. Lenze (Franck Le Gal, Erwan Le Roux)
6. Les Mousquetaires (Bertrand De Broc, Joe Seeten)
7. E. Leclerc - Bouygues Telecom (Corentin Douguet, Thierry Cihabagny)
8. Domaine Du Mont D'arbois (Thierry Duprey Du Vors Ent, Francois Gabart)
9. Groupe Celeos (Ronan Treussart, Anthony Marchand)
10. Sojasun (Liz Wardley, Eric Peron)

www.tourdebretagnealavoile.com

CORK WEEK 2008
"Competing at Cork Week is always a pleasure, because of the beautiful location, great sailing waters, varied racing, excellent race management and great competition. Winning in 2006 was especially satisfying as it was our first major victory in Magic Glove after many months of development, building and tuning. I'm already looking forward to 2008".

Colm Barrington - Magic Glove
Winner of IRC Zero and Boat of the Week

12th - 18th July 2008
www.corkweek.ie

THREE-YEAR TITLE GLOBAL SPONSORSHIP ANNOUNCED BY BT
Tuesday in Paris, BT and legendary sailor Ellen MacArthur presented 'BT Team Ellen' outlining a unique partnership encompassing the sport of sailing and BT's corporate social responsibility campaign under BT's 'Better World' banner. BT Team Ellen will also be collaborating with Cisco, the worldwide leader in networking.

From Ellen MacArthur:

"I first came into contact with BT in 1995 when I won the BT/YJA Young Sailor of Year award at the age of 18 for passing my Yachtmaster Qualification, which is now an incredible 13 years ago! Since 1998 BT have been our communications partner, and were one of our founding partners. I am therefore delighted that our relationship has resulted in me being here in Paris to announce the title sponsorship for our sailing team, BT Team Ellen, that will incorporate the sailing programmes of our new IMOCA 60 monohull and the BT Extreme 40 campaign.

"For the sailing team, I have already been closely involved with the design of the new IMOCA 60 monohull and out on the water I plan to race in some of the crewed IMOCA races throughout the 2008-10 IMOCA World Championship and also participate in the 2008 Extreme 40 Sailing Series [see sailing programme below].

"Collectively, Nick, Seb and I, have sailed thousands of ocean miles, solo and with a crew; each of us has competed in the solo Vendee Globe and we believe that our shared experience will ultimately help Seb achieve his ultimate goal of podium success in 2008. Already we have worked closely together on the design and build of the new IMOCA 60 monohull. We are all driven individuals who have pursued many dreams in the past and who have been given some unbelievable opportunities. As part of the BT Team Ellen project we hope to be able to give similar opportunities to the next generation of young sailing talent.

Sebastien Josse will compete in next edition of The Transat and the solo Vendee Globe 2008/09:

Part of the Offshore Challenges Sailing Team since 2002, Nick Moloney is currently in his first season of racing an Extreme 40.

BT Team Ellen: sailing programme

IMOCA Ocean Racing World Championship Circuit 2008-2010

IMOCA activity in 2008:
April 2008 - Launch of the boat
May 2008 - The Transat (solo transatlantic)
June 2008 - Round the Island Race (crewed)
August 2008 - Skandia Cowes Week (crewed)
November 2008 to February 2009 - Vendee Globe (solo, non-stop around the world)

IMOCA activity in 2009:
February 2009 - Finish of the Vendee Globe Race
May 2009 - Calais Round Britain & Ireland Race (crewed)
June 2009 - Round the Island Race (crewed)
August 2009 - Cowes Week (crewed)
August 2009 - The Fastnet Race (crewed)
September-November 2009 - Transat Jacques Vabre Race (two crew) or other European event tbc by the IMOCA class

IMOCA activity in 2010:
To be confirmed

Extreme 40 Races in 2008
The BT Extreme 40 will compete in the 2008 iShares Cup Extreme 40 Sailing Series to include at least four similar events to those included in 2007.

btteamellen.com

STAR EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP
93 teams from 27 nations start racing Monday with 6 races, the last one on Friday. The starts are each day at 1300 with anticipated "Ora" winds of this season to be at 15 knots.

Racing in the regatta is the tactician of Luna Rosso and the Star Olympic Champion Torben Grael, the helmsman of +39, The Englishman Ian Percy and other Star World Champions such as the Swede Frederik Loof, the German Alex Hagen and the Italians Roberto Benamati and Enrico Chieffi.

The number of participants is a record for a Star European Championship. The "open" character of the regatta (it was not necessary to qualify to race) has brought the extraordinary participation of 27 countries and confirms the success of this class that started racing in the Olympics in 1932 and, with the single year of 1976 of non-participation, has always been present at the Games.

For Italy, this event is valid as a selection event for the team that will represent the country at the 2008 Olympics in China. Due to this the Italian participants are the largest group at Malcasine with 33 boats. After two previous races of selection of the 5 total that are planned, clearly in command of being the Italian representative to the Olympics are the pair from Guardia di Finanza, Diego Negri and Luigi Viale, in front of another team from Finanza, Francesco Bruni and Gilberto Nobili. Negri and Viale finished 5th at last year's Europeans and obtained the same result (the best of the last decade for Italy) at the World Championship in Portugal in July. Also racing at Malcasine are the last two Italian Star World Champions, the local Roberto Benamati (1992) and Enrico Chieffi (1996),

The Star class is the class in which Italy has gotten its best Olympic results - 5 medals:

1 Gold (1952) Straulino and Rode
1 Silver (1956) Straulino and Rode
3 Bronze (1968) Cavallo and Gargano; (1980 and 1984) Gorla and Peraboni

In the history of the European Championship (first sailed in 1932), Itally has won 15 times with Agostino Straulino holding the record or 7 consecutive wins, but the last Italian European Champion with an absolute win in the regatta was in 1985 by Gorla/Peraboni.

Three races have been sailed to date; Wednesday is a lay day with racing resumed on Thursday.

Top five after three races:

1. Ian Percy / Andrew Simpson, GBR, 10 points
2. Fredrik Loof / Anders Eksstrom, SWE, 22
3. Flavio Marazzi / Enrico De Marina, SUI, 23
4. Peter Bromby / Lee White, BER, 25
5. Torben Grael / Marcelo Ferreira, BRA, 29

www.starclass.org
Complete results at www.fragliavela.org/docs/event86/starrace3a.HTM

BMW ORACLE ON THE COURT RULINGS...
The Supreme Court of the State of New York today ruled that it would hear argument on October 22 on the validity of the challenge that has produced the proposed protocol for the next America's Cup.

"We are very pleased with this decision, as we are keen to see this issue properly resolved with a minimum of further delay," Tom Ehman, Head of External Affairs for GGYC's team, BMW ORACLE Racing, said.

"During the hearing, the court suggested that the parties engage in mediation to resolve all disputes. This is a course that we continue to support," Ehman said.

"Our strong preference remains to negotiate a solution. If this is not possible, today's decision provides for swift resolution through the courts."

He said the team strongly favors an America's Cup regatta like the last one sailing in monohulls, and had supported seeking a quick legal resolution so that all participants could know the outcome of the case as soon as possible.

The San Francisco club alleges that the current America's Cup Defender, Societe Nautique de Geneve (SNG), is in breach of its duty under the Deed of Gift that governs the Cup. It says SNG has accepted a challenge from an invalid contender, and is seeking to impose an unprecedented one-sided set of rules that unfairly advantage the defender to the detriment of all other competitors.

Ehman said that on October 22 the court would hear argument as to the merits of the case and that a judgment could be expected shortly thereafter. -- Jane Eagleson, BMW ORACLE Racing, bmworacleracing.com

SOUTHAMPTON BOAT SHOW
The Southampton Boat Show in association with ITV Meridian returns to Mayflower Park this September. Celebrating its 39th year the Show, which has Europe's largest purpose built on-water marina, takes place from 14-23 September 2007. This year, the Show will see an exciting line up of famous boats on the feature berth of the Hydropool Marina. Not only will Sir Robin Knox-Johnston be there with his Open 60 "Lombard Marine Finance:, along with Mike Golding and the Open 60 ECOVER but TEAMORIGIN, Official Challenger for the 33rd America's Cup, will bring the newly liveried GBR 75 race training America's Cup boat to the Show.

www.southamptonboatshow.com

22FT CATAMARAN CONQUERS NORTH WEST PASSAGE
'Gamble won, challenge succeeded, dream realised'.

That is Sebastien Roubinet's comment on what must stand as one of the most impressive and historic sailing achievements this year. On Sunday he and two crew succeeded in crossing the North West, arriving on the west coast of Greenland on Sunday after three months and 21 days on board the tiny 22ft (7m) Kevlar-reinforced catamaran Babouche.

One of the smallest yachts ever to achieve this feat, Babouche is highly unusual. She is part sailing boat, part ice yacht, with metal runners on her hulls so that she can 'skate' over ice if her way is blocked.

More on Elaine Bunting's blog:
www.ybw.com/auto/newsdesk/20070810073134ywnews.html

The expedition site: www.babouche-expe.eu

HOOLIGAN CAPSIZE FINDINGS
From the RORC Rating Office at www.rorcrating.com

Keel failure, capsize, and loss of one crew member from the Max Fun 35 yacht Hooligan V 10 miles south of Prawle Point on 3 February 2007.

The Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) have now completed and published their report into the above. The complete report may be found on their website at: www.maib.gov.uk/publications/index.cfm

The report identifies a number of safety issues and makes several recommendations. These include that the RORC draws the attention of RORC members and yacht owners to the following safety issues identified in the investigation report:

- The need to rigorously follow the standards selected for design criteria, especially where those include Safety Factors.

- The importance of referring to original and revised drawings when considering modifications to ensure that proposals will not compromise safety.

- The need for quality systems to be in place to properly check the product against the design criteria.

- The importance of examining keels for signs of fatigue cracking, especially where hollow steel fabricated steel keels are fitted, and to consider using non-destructive examination techniques whenever there is doubt about the integrity of the appendage.

Additionally, attention is drawn to the following comment on page 7 of the Recreational Craft Sectorial Group (RSG) Guidelines 2007:

- RSG urges the industry and Notified Bodies to use EN Standardsť.

Hooligan V held an IRC certificate issued by the RORC Rating Office and from time to time participated in RORC races. Neither the RORC Rating Office nor RORC accept any responsibility for the seaworthiness of a boat raced under IRC or participating in any RORC races.

Any comments or queries please to the RORC Technical Director Mike Urwin at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

SPIDERTECH SAILS AT SLAM CUP
Spidertech sails, designed by Ullman Sails Italy, showed good performance in the latest RC44 circuit racing, the SLAM cup in Santa Marherita, Italy. The fleet has a mix of Quantum, North and Ullman (Spidertech) sails, and has now raced in Cascais with 25+ knots of wind, down to the 4-5 knots at the latest event, in both fleet and match racing. They have now done more than 100 hours of intense racing, still showing design shapes and no signs of degradation.

www.spidertechsails.biz/news/archives/2007/09/11/rc-44-circuit-portofino-ita-10th-september/#more-127

CLIPPER 07-08 ROUND THE WORLD YACHT RACE
With less than a week until the starting gun fires for the Clipper 07-08 Round the World Yacht Race, the crews of the ten internationally-backed 68-foot yachts are gearing up for a 35,000-mile adventure of a lifetime.

The biennial Clipper Round the World Yacht Race will start at 1500 BST on Sunday 16 September from Liverpool, the European Capital of Culture 2008. The ten yachts will race between 14 ports on five continents before returning to Liverpool on 5 July next year.

This Sunday the fleet will line up on the River Mersey for the start of Race 1 of Clipper 07-08 from Liverpool to La Rochelle. The 610-mile race will take approximately three days with the fleet due to arrive on Wednesday 19 September. The arrival of the fleet will coincide with the start of the Grand Pavois, Europe's largest boat show, and will mark the first time the Clipper Race has visited France.

Each of the ten boats taking part will act as a floating billboard around the world for its city sponsor. The international line up competing in Clipper 07-08 includes Liverpool 08, Durban 2010, westernaustralia2011.com, Hull & Humber, Uniquely Singapore, Qingdao, Glasgow: Scotland with style Clipper, Jamaica and New York. The final yacht will be named at a special ceremony on at 1400 BST on Friday 14 September at Albert Dock.

The crew members representing Western Australia on westernaustralia2011.com are competing to defend their title as champions after sailing to victory in Clipper 05-06.

www.clipperroundtheworld.com

ROLEX VETERAN BOAT RALLY
Porto Cervo, Sardina, Italy: Today should have seen the start of the Rolex Veteran Boat Rally 2007. Strong winds put paid to that and, instead, journalists and spectators attending the event took advantage of the postponement to brush up on the history of one part of the fleet that has gathered so far.

The weather outlook for tomorrow suggests that racing will take place. The wind will rotate to the east overnight. In the morning the fleet may expect 13-18 knots from the northeast, decreasing in the afternoon to 9-14 knots as it moves further east.

Yesterday (10th September) did see some racing as elements of the Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup and Rolex Veteran Boat Rally fleets joined with other invited boats to celebrate the fortieth anniversary of the foundation of the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda. It's not often one gets the chance to see Neville Crichton's ultra-modern 98-foot Alfa Romeo (NZL on a start line alongside Tuiga (MON) 30-metre Fife sloop launched 1909. But they, along with some 40 other yachts of various sizes and age raced over the same 22-mile course, that saw Luigi Arturo Carpaneda and Bottadritta 5, a Ron Holland designed sloop, emerge as overall victor from the eclectic mix. The evening prizegiving and party on the Piazza Azzurra, supported by Rolex, formed a fitting end to a day of celebration and an appropriate forerunner to the racing and social programme that lay ahead at the Rolex Veteran Boat Rally.

The Rolex Veteran Boat Rally 2007 is organized by the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda and will run from September 11th to September 15th. 12 Metre racing tales place from 11th-13th inclusive and Veteran boat racing from the 13th-15th inclusive.

For more information about the Rolex Veteran Boat Rally 2007 including entry lists and results please visit www.yccs.it

FEATURED BROKERAGE
ZANA (also known as KONICA MINOLTA), the Brett Bakewell-White designed 98' Supermaxi is for sale by tender. Closing date is the 12th of October. She was designed to be a no compromise record breaker, with an eye towards being converted to a canting keel yacht; she has all the potential that is needed to be a future record breaker, and available now!

Please contact Berthon International Yacht Brokers for tender instructions and more details. This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or +44 1590 679222

THE LAST WORD
Every improvement in communication makes the bore more terrible. -- Frank Moore Colby

OC Events, www.ocevents.org , organisers of two major IMOCA 60 oceanic events, the new double-handed Barcelona World Race 2007, and the original solo transocean race, The Transat 2008 (ex-OSTAR) plus the Extreme 40 Sailing Series for The iShares Cup.

www.YachtsandCruisers.com the new place to buy and sell prestige boats, the website has been designed to showcase high-end boats. People looking to buy prestige boats will be able to easily navigate their way around the site quickly. The portfolio of thousands of boats can be viewed by category, make, location and price. Alternatively the 'Advanced Search' facility will benefit those buyers who have a specific boat in mind.

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